Slow Travel Will Be Big in 2024, Here’s Where to Do It

We’re moving on from the era of “revenge travel” when people were desperate to take trips in order to make up for lost time during the periods of lockdown at the beginning of COVID-19 pandemic. According to a study from Morning Consult, pent-up travel demand is now decreasing—meaning the trend of urgent vacations is over. Travel Lemming, an online travel guide, wants everyone to use this time to embrace a more relaxed approach to traveling in 2024.

The guide released its list of 50 best places to travel in 2024 this week, with a focus on slow travel. Slow travel, for the uninitiated, is a more sustainable way to travel focused on local communities and less mass produced and high volume travel experiences. The list prioritizes more remote destinations and “hidden local gems,” in addition to domestic destinations.

“2024 will be the year travelers choose immersive experiences over itineraries packed to the brim,” Nate Hake, Travel Lemming’s CEO, said in a statement. Our list is filled with destinations perfect for slower experiential trips. For example, the opening of the much-anticipated Mayan Train will allow more travelers to unlock the magic of the Yucatán, one of my favorite underrated travel destinations in the world.”

Let’s get into this list. In the top 10, there’s a great mix of North American, South American, Asian, and European destinations. In the number-one spot is Yucatán, Mexico, which is anticipated to become more popular with travelers in the coming year, with the opening of Maya Train, which will connect the states of Chiapas, Tabasco, Campeche, Yucatán, and Quintana Roo.

“We are thrilled to have been chosen by Travel Lemming as the world’s best travel destination for 2024,” said Michelle Fridman Hirsch, Yucatán’s minister of tourism, in a statement. “Yucatán is home to seven Magical Towns, hundreds of haciendas and cenotes, [235 miles] of coastline with calm waters of emerald green and turquoise blue, Chichen Itza, one of the Wonders of the Modern World, and 20 other archaeological sites to visit.”

In total, the list includes 15 locations in Europe, seven in Asia, two in South America, two in Oceania, two in Africa, five in North America (outside of the US), and 17 in the United States. You can see the complete list below and learn more about the destinations at TravelLemming.com.

1. Yucatán, Mexico
2. Gizo, Solomon Islands
3. Stavanger, Norway
4. Antigua, Guatemala
5. Memphis, Tennessee
6. Phú Quốc, Vietnam
7. St. John’s Newfoundland & Labrador, Canada
8. Kodiak, Alaska
9. Guatapé, Colombia
10. Eureka Springs, Arkansas
11. Voyageurs National Park, Minnesota
12. Tunisia
13. Chiriquí Province, Panama
14. Vashon Island, Washington
15. Manchester, UK
16. Ko Yao Noi, Thailand
17. Ljubljana, Slovenia
18. Taipei, Taiwan
19. Wales (Cymru)
20. Iquitos, Peru
21. Quincy, Massachusetts
22. Tbilisi, Georgia
23. Türkiye
24. Jarabacoa, Dominican Republic
25. Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina
26. Genoa, Italy
27. São Miguel Island, Azores, Portugal
28. Essaouira, Morocco
29. Jacksonville, Florida
30. Northern Sumatra, Indonesia
31. Ranthambore National Park, India
32. Biarritz, France
33. Spring Green, Wisconsin
34. Sintra, Portugal
35. Cuenca, Spain
36. Maunabo, Puerto Rico
37. Marseille, France
38. Frisco, Texas
39. Mount Cotton, Queensland, Australia
40. Inverness, Scotland
41. Steamboat Springs, Colorado
42. Bisbee, Arizona
43. Townsend, Tennessee
44. Klamath Falls, Oregon
45. Oviedo, Spain
46. Sant’Agnello, Italy
47. Hoboken, New Jersey
48. Jenner, California
49. Yabucoa, Puerto Rico
50. Takayama, Japan